NEW: Streetscape and Double Utility Pole Update

Adam Brodsky
Deputy Town SupervisorAs of October 5th , the new water system is 95% complete with the final step being to tie-in the water main into the individual properties. We hope within two weeks to remove the temporary water system and free up pedestrian access throughout the Hamlet. We then will move onto the new sewer system installation. Boswell Engineering will be attending our meeting on Tuesday, 10/10 to discuss progress.

In addition to update the Community on some of the financial aspects of the Project, we are planning on utilizing a portion of the tree bank fund which was set up to be used for public projects which currently has a balance of $238,454. We will use these funds to install over Seventy-five new trees and shrubs Downtown. The streetscape plan is ideally suited for the application of the tree bank funds. Using these funds will help us to offset some of the project costs associated with the new Streetscape.

Now onto my meeting this week regarding the double utility poles throughout the Town. I facilitated the follow-up meeting on the progress of the removal of double utility poles within New Castle. Representatives of Con Ed, Verizon, Altice ( formerly Cablevision), and the Town ( Administration, Police, DPW, Engineering) were all present. I received an update from Tom McArdle of Verizon who reported to the twenty people in attendance that 100 double poles and specifically designated problem single poles had been removed year to date within Town; 47 of them removed in July and August of this year. He further stated that although New Castle only had 150 double utility poles listed on the NJNS list for tracking such poles, he knew the number was far greater. As it stands now, the Town had identified approximately 400 in our Town and Verizon acknowledged that at least 238 were now formally cataloged in the NJNS lists for action. This number did not include the 100 poles that were already removed this year. The NJNS list is a list of double poles the NYS Public Service Commission requires the utilities to maintain and has a deadline for action ( which unfortunately is ignored without sanction).

Verizon assured us that they were committed to removing all of the double utility poles in Town and will be providing us with a updated list of those poles that have been removed. It is our intention to update the complete list of double poles to reflect the poles that have been removed and those that still need action by the utilities. We will post that updated list as soon as we receive the information and will keep the public posted on the progress of these removals.

NEW: Supervisor Quarterly Update – 3rd Quarter – 2017

2017 – 3rd Quarter ReviewI have said it again and again: it is truly an honor to serve the citizens of New Castle. From the start, I have believed that your Town Supervisor should be guided by rights and obligations. The rights of the community to be heard and to be informed are critical to a responsive Town Government. And we must always be conscious of our obligations to listen and communicate effectively as we work to address current concerns and problems while at the same time improving our Town and planning for the future. I also recognize that while town-wide issues are my focus, no individual matter is too small for a responsive town government. I welcome those opportunities for more personal contact with residents. As we look ahead, there remains much work to be done, and I will continue to work hard for the entire community. It is my pleasure, then, as Supervisor to provide a quarterly report – 3rd Quarter of 2017 – to the community about current Town projects and initiatives.

Hunts Place Brownfield Remediation

Chappaqua Downtown Revitalization

Chappaqua Performing Arts Center

Chappaqua Crossing

Paving

Sidewalks

2017 Comprehensive Plan Implementation

Railroad Crossing Safety

Distracted Driving

Westchester Airport

Sustainability

Community Preparedness

Ethics Code

Route 117

Double Utility Poles

Town Hall Basketball Court

Millwood DOT Yard

Millwood InterGenerate Community Garden

Millwood 200 Year Anniversary

Millwood Train Station

Green Community Roundtable

Community Sign

Chappaqua Crossing

Keeping of Poultry

Regulation of Vape Shops

These are the highlights of the matters of Town-wide concern that we have been addressing recently. As I noted at the beginning, a responsive Town government listens, responds and communicates. We work for you, our fellow residents! As we look ahead, I will continue to work hard and get things done that benefit our entire community.To read more about all of this, click here.

NEW: Collection for Hurricane Maria

CSF Moms’ Night Out

Chappaqua Library October Broadway series

A CHAPPAQUA LIBRARY PRODUCTION

The library is pleased to host a month-long series of programs celebrating Broadway. Broadway professionals will be speaking about their specialities: music, the written word and the visual arts.

Kickoff: Broadway Musical Revue

Broadway stars Erin Stewart (A Little Night Music), and David DeWitt (Phantom of the Opera) join the West Point Quinette 7 Ensemble and the Chappaqua Orchestra strings, with Michael Shapiro, conductor and host.

Sunday, October 8 @ 3pm

Chappaqua Performing Arts Center: Tim Kubart and the Space Cadets

Chappaqua Performing Arts Center – So Percussion

So Percussion, Sat 10/14 @ 8pm, Chappaqua Performing Arts Center located at 480 North Bedford Road, Chappaqua.Sō Percussion is a percussion-based music organization that creates and presents new collaborative works to adventurous and curious audiences and educational initiatives to engaged students, while providing meaningful service to its communities, in order to exemplify the power of music to unite people and forge deep social bonds.

Tickets for Sō Percussion, ($30 – $60) can be purchased online at Ticketmaster.com, by calling 1-800-745-3000 or in person on show day at the lobby box office.

NEW: Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival

Don’t miss the fifth annual Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival, October 14, 10 am – 4 pm, at Bell Middle School in Chappaqua. Over 90 beloved authors and illustrators will be there, in person, to thrill, inspire, and instill the love of reading. Books will be available for purchase, including old favorites and latest works. There will be lots of family friendly activities, a great food court, and live entertainment that includes a fun-filled dance party. It’s the perfect family day. Please Click here to go to our website and learn more about the authors that will be at the festival. To sign up to volunteer, click here.

Great Chap Bake Sale To Help Hurricane Harvey Victims

We hope you all had a relaxing and enjoyable summer. We are excited for our 8th year on Saturday, October 14 from 10am-4pm at the Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival (CCBF) and hope to see you all there.

In the process of planning this year’s event, we along with all of you, were so incredibly moved by the impact of Hurricane Harvey and the devastating stories and images coming out of Texas. When we learned the Houston Public School system would be offering free breakfast and lunch for all students for the entire academic year, we knew the need would be long term and we knew we needed to help.

We requested that Share Our Strength consider donating funds raised at this year’s GCBS to meals programs for children in Texas. While this does not negate the need for continued support of meals programs here in New York State, Share Our Strength agreed that our funds would help supplement the incredible work they are already doing on the ground in Texas.

We plan to work as hard as ever to help children in Texas and we hope that all of you will bake, volunteer your time, donate money and buy raffle tickets to support this effort. Our fundraising page can be accessed here. Children are in need, no matter their geographic location, and we are so proud of this community of supporters for their dedication and devotion to this cause.

If you haven’t already, please let us know if you would like to bake or volunteer your time on the day of the event. And be on the lookout for an email detailing how to pre-purchase raffle tickets for great prizes coming soon.

Proof that a small community can make a BIG difference in the fight against childhood hunger.

Method & Melody

There is no better combination than Fine art and Music. NWAG opens their show, Method & Melody on October 14,, 2017 in conjunction with the musical performance with Sō Percussion.Co-Sponsored by Sari Shaw of Platinum Reality in Chappaqua, the opening reception for the show Method & Melody will be from 5-8pm at Chappaqua Performing Arts Center located at 480 North Bedford Road, Chappaqua. Tickets for Sō Percussion, ($30 – $60) can be purchased online at Ticketmaster.com, by calling 1-800-745-3000 or in person on show day at the lobby box office.

All of the work from Method & Melody is for sale and will be on display through November 17th. Visitors are welcome during normal business hours of the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center or by appointment with a member of NWAG, which can be set up by emailing them at nwartistsguild@gmail.com. For additional information, visit www.ChappaquaPAC.org or call 914-458-5143

1st Annual Oktoberfest at FCC

Exceptional People’s Committee Presents Nature Walk for People of ALL Abilities

The Saw Mill Audubon’s wonderful wheelchair accessible Pinecliff Sanctuary has allowed the EPIC (Exceptional People’s Committee) of New Castle to plan a nature walk for people of all abilities. Anne Swaim, Executive Director of Saw Mill Audubon, worked with me (A member of EPIC), to plan a structured “scavenger hunt” for participants to get to know Pinecliff Sanctuary’s wildlife.The walk will take place on October 14 from 10-11 and from 3-4. The rain date is October 21. This will be the first of several seasonal walks at Pinecliff for people of ALL abilities.

NEW: Ragamuffin Parade – October 22

NEW: Exceptional People of New Castle: EVNY- Open House…October 22

JOIN EVNY FOR AN OPEN HOUSE!Come help us celebrate the official opening of our new job site!

Where: 350 Lexington Avenue Mount Kisco, NY

When: Sunday, October 22, 2017

Time: 11:00 am to 2:00 pm

Extraordinary Ventures New York (EVNY) was established in 2015 for the purpose of creating employment opportunities for adults with autism and other developmental disabilities.

NEW: Youth Volunteer Fair

NEW: Notice of Annual Meeting of Fair Ridge Cemetery Association

The annual meeting of the Fair Ridge Cemetery Association of Chappaqua, New York will be held on Tuesday, October 17, 2017, at the Chappaqua Town Hall. The meeting will start at 7:00 P.M. All persons who are proprietors of one or more plots are entitled to attend the meeting and to participate in the discussions and voting. Among the items on the agenda will be the election of five trustees to serve for a three year term.Fair Ridge Cemetery was founded right after the civil war in 1867 by Horace Greely and other leading citizens of the Town of New Castle. The original sections of the cemetery lie along the gently sloping ridge that parallels Quaker Road. The earliest graves are concentrated toward the southern end. Most of the gravestones are clustered in family plots, some enclosed within low stone borders, some with a central family monument surrounded by smaller individual markers. Some of the earliest graves are those of members of the neighboring Quaker Meeting closely located to the Fair Ridge property, and are marked with simple rough slabs of local fieldstone. Later in the nineteenth century, professionally carved monuments made from marble came into use, but these did not weather well. Granite – the so-called “rock of ages” – has been in use since the late nineteenth century and remains the material of choice today. Since its founding, Fair Ridge has become the final resting place of many former residents of the Town of New Castle and other communities in Westchester County. Fair Ridge has remained tranquil and unspoiled over the years and today remains to be an active cemetery located at 476 Quaker Road, Chappaqua, NY 10514. The caring staff (John and Didi Gonzalez; 914 238-4507) provide peaceful and well-maintained grounds designed to meet the needs of each family and to commemorate the lives of those buried on the grounds. Fair Ridge is a non-denominational cemetery, and welcomes individuals of all faiths and beliefs.

NEW: Annual Breast Cancer Conference

NEW: LWVNC Constitutional Convention Forum

CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION: PROS AND CONS EDUCATIONAL FORUM

The League of Women Voters® of New Castle, the League of Women Voters® of North East Westchester and the John Jay Homestead State Historic Site are holding a educational forum titled “Constitutional Convention: Pros and Cons” at 7 p.m. on Monday, October 23, 2017 at the John Jay Homestead State Historic Site, 400 Jay Street, Katonah, NY.

Panel Discussion with:

Nicholas A. Robinson
University Professor of Environmental Law
Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University

Alan Rothstein
General Counsel to the New York City Bar Association, Ret.

Jennifer Wilson
Director of Program and Policy for the League of Women Voters® of New York State

Background

The New York State Constitution requires that voters decide every 20 years whether to hold a convention to amend the state constitution (a “ConCon”). The process has three decision points: whether to call a convention; if a convention is called, who will serve as delegates; and when delegates propose amendments to the constitution, whether to ratify them or not. The first decision point – whether to call a convention – will be on our ballot this coming Election Day, November 7.

Come and learn more about this important right and process!

Refreshments will be served starting at 6:30 p.m. For more information about the evening, please contact lwvnewcastle@gmail.com or 914-263-0357.

No charge to attend, but reservations are appreciated. For tickets, please go to here.

NEW: Harvest Fest

Come to the great lawn at Church of St Mary the Virgin in Chappaqua for a Harvest Festival and Pumpkin Patch! Bring your whole family and enjoy hay rides, fire truck rides, games, pumpkin decorating and the most scrumptious apple pie. Pumpkin Patch is open as well. Event is held on Saturday, Oct .21 from 11 – 3 and pumpkin sales only on Sunday, Oct. 22 from 12 – 5.

NEW: Acts of Kindness Day – October 23rd

Please join us in bringing awareness to the emotional, social, and physical benefits of performing acts of kindness as we celebrate A day Of Kindness (“AOK Day”) in Chappaqua. This year, October 23rd has been designated AOK Day!Our community can serve as a model for performing acts of kindness and help to spread the joy of being kind. On October 23rd, post cards will be disseminated throughout our stores, restaurants, town hall, etc. Pick up as many as you like. Perform a kind act for someone, then leave the card if you choose. Kindness can have a ripple effect. With your help, we can all benefit from a kind act!

New Castle’s Carrie Chapman Catt & The Women’s Suffrage Movement, Exhibition Opening (10/13)
2017 marks the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage in New York State. New York State awarded this right to women three years before the 19th Amendment expanded it nationwide. In honor of this significant anniversary, the New Castle Historical Society has created a special exhibition exploring the women’s suffrage movement and the life of Carrie Chapman Catt, a leading suffragist and former New Castle resident.Stop by the Horace Greeley House Museum for the exhibition opening on Friday, October 13th, from 6 pm – 9 pm. Parents are encouraged to bring their children for this family-friendly night at the museum. For more information, please contact 914-238-4666 or director@newcastlehs.org

Book Talk – In Defiance: Runaways from Slavery in the Mid-Hudson Valley (10/26)
Stop by the Horace Greeley House Museum on Thursday, October 26, 2017, at 7:30 pm, as Susan Stessin-Cohn and Ashley Hurlburt-Biagini, authors of In Defiance: Runaways from Slavery in New York’s Hudson River Valley 1735–1831, give a talk about their recent book and research. In Defiance features 523 archival newspaper notices for runaway slaves, plus notices for slaves captured, slaves for sale, and notices offering to purchase slaves, all with full transcriptions.

Come and Meet Your (Former) Neighbors: Now Permanently Residing at Fair Ridge Cemetery (10/29)
On Sunday, October 29, from 12:30 to 4:30 P.M., the New Castle Historical Society and Fair Ridge Cemetery will jointly sponsor a public reception celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Fair Ridge Cemetery, including guided tours of its most historic sections.

Fair Ridge Cemetery, on Quaker Road in Chappaqua, was founded in 1867 by a group of prominent New Castle citizens. Its first president was Horace Greeley. Ever since then it has served as a non-profit, public-service institution, and has provided the final resting place for many community residents. The cemetery tours will highlight the monuments of several historic families, whose landmark homes still exist, such as the Haights, Havilands, Quinbys, and Washburns, to name just a few.

Fair Ridge Cametery is itself an official New Castle Landmark, and one of the most historic sites in the town. As New Castle Town Historian Gray Williams puts it, “Community cemeteries such as Fair Ridge are the very embodiment of local history. Their monuments preserve the memories of those who have gone before us, and help to form a vivid connection between the past and the present.”

Admission to the reception is free, and parking will be available. Refreshments will be served. Walking tours will last about 45 minutes, and will be conducted at 1:00, 2:15, and 3:30. Attendance limited. Please register by contacting Cassie Ward, NCHS Executive Director, at 914-238-4666 or director@newcastlehs.org. Registration Recommended | Walk-ins Welcome

NEW: Greeley Youth Lacrosse

New Electric Vehicle Opportunity – BMW

Here’s another great Electric Vehicle opportunity for you!Claim $7,500 off the New BMWi3 along with $7,500 Federal Tax Credits + Up to $1,700 NYS Rebates

Millwood-Ossining Go! Public Forums

The Towns of Ossining and New Castle and the Village of Ossining were recently awarded a grant from the Hudson River Valley Greenway to develop a plan for an Open Space/Bike Lane/Commerce Connectivity Corridor, which would create enhanced pedestrian and bike access between commercial zones and open space in the Ossining and New Castle area. An inter-municipal task force has been established and has begun the process of identifying potential routes to bring the plan to fruition. The Millwood-Ossining Go! Task Force is seeking public input on potential routes at public forums scheduled for Thursday, October 5th at the Club Fit Briarcliff Café, located at 584 N. State Road in Briarcliff Manor, and Thursday, November 2nd at the Ossining Public Library Café, located at 53 Croton Avenue in Ossining. Both days will include forums from 1pm-2pm and 7pm-8pm.

Please RSVP on the Town’s website. Giveaways at the forums will be provided by Club Fit Briarcliff. For more information, call the Town of Ossining Supervisor’s Office at (914) 762-6001 or email vcafarelli@townofossining.com.

Chappaqua Performing Arts Center: Tim Kubart and the Space Cadets – Sunday, October 8th, 2pmAwarded a Grammy for “Best Children’s Album,” Tim Kubart is the host for the popular preschool program “Sunny Side Up,” on NBC Universal’s Sprout Channel. Tim Kubart and his band, the “Space Cadets,” deliver a highly interactive, family friendly dance party for all ages.

Chappaqua Performing Arts Center: Drama Bee

It has been proven that kids who are involved in the arts, do better in school, have more creativity, imagination and self confidence. Our educational theatre program, DRAMABEE, is a great way to introduce your child to theatre and the dramatic arts. During the 10 week DRAMABEE enrichment session, each student will be engaged in theatre activities (dancing, singing, acting) that will:

Help develop speaking skills

Build confidence

Enhance early social skills

Foster creative learning.

The end of the 10 week DRAMABEE session culminates in a live performance in front of parents and family members.. This proven educational program was developed by John Fanelli, the founder of Lighthouse Youth Theatre and Standing Ovation Studios based on the 20 + years of developing and delivering educational theatre programs to empower youth. We now bring this same focus to our pre-schoolers!!To register, click here.

Railroad Crossing Safety: Red Flashing Lights

A controlled railroad crossing usually has red lights along with a crossing gate. Wait for gates to rise AND for the red lights to stop flashing – that’s the law.

Neighborhood Speed Awareness Campaign

Problems with speeding vehicles often involve local drivers who are daily roadway users and live in or nearby the affected neighborhood. A Speed Awareness Campaign is an effective way to remind local drivers to lower their speeds and be extra cautious in residential neighborhoods. These campaigns are a great way for New Castle residents and police to work together to make the neighborhood safer.

For the campaign to work we need at least a few (hopefully many) neighbors who will agree to place a “Drive Like Your Kids Live Here” lawn sign in front of their home during the campaign. One neighbor will be the contact person who will distribute the signs to the neighborhood volunteers. The Police Department will install similar metal signs at appropriate locations near the entrance to the neighborhood. The campaign will run for at least two weeks. If requested the neighborhood will be placed on a rotation list and the campaign will return on a rotating basis once or twice annually.

We also offer similar “Keep Kids Alive, Drive 25” signs for streets with a 25mph maximum speed limit.

If you are interested in bringing a speed awareness campaign to your neighborhood, please contact the office of the Chief of Police – dshanley@mynewcastle.org or call 914-238-7292.